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Camp 5 Fire 100 percent contained

Halsey - Fire Officials declared the Camp 5 Fire as 100 percent contained at 3 p.m. on the 4th of July. Tim Buskirk, Bessey District Ranger said, "I can't think of a better message to celebrate this holiday than to say Camp 5 Fire is 100 percent contained. We will continue to monitor the area with a couple of engines and small crew but will be releasing the rest for assignment to other fires or to their home units."The Camp 5 Fire started June 30 approximately 22 miles southeast of Halsey by a lightning strike from a mid-day thunderstorm. The fire burned 1,043 acres of National Forest grasslands and timber. No private lands, structures or outbuildings were burned or damaged."In the next few weeks we will complete a comprehensive damage assessment of roads, trails and general conditions, and then we can move forward with rehabilitation," he said. "Finally, I want to send a special thanks to the two Soldier Creek Hand Crews, their supervisors, John Cattin and Brian Piontek from the Pine Ridge Job Corps Center in Chadron. My hat's off to this young, highly professional firecrew. They worked hard and stayed with us right down to the end, doing the hard mop-up work that assures a successful closure to Camp 5," said Buskirk.The entire Nebraska National Forests & Grasslands remains under Stage II Fire Restriction Orders, and fireworks are not allowed anywhere on National Forest System lands.